When a Woman Breaks Her Jewel Box

When a Woman Breaks Her Jewel Box (Korean: 옥합을 깨뜨릴 때; RR: Okhabeul kkaetteuril ttae) is a 1971 South Korean film directed by Kim Soo-yong. It was awarded Best Film at the Blue Dragon Film Awards ceremony.^[2][3]

When a Woman Breaks Her Jewel Box
Hangul	옥합을 깨뜨릴 때
Hanja	玉盒을 깨뜨릴 때
RR	Okhabeul kkaetteuril ttae
MR	Okhabŭl kkaettŭril ttae
Directed by	Kim Soo-yong[1]
Written by	Kim Gang-yun Yoo Han-cheol
Produced by	Kim Tai-soo
Starring	Hong Se-mi
Cinematography	Hong Dong-hyuk
Edited by	Yu Jae-won
Music by	Choi Chang-kwon
Distributed by	Tae Chang Enterprises Co., Ltd.
Release date	March 13, 1971 (1971-03-13)
Running time	83 minutes
Country	South Korea
Language	Korean

Name

The title of the film is a reference to the anointment of Jesus Christ at Bethany in Matthew 14:3-9, during which a woman poured perfume in her alabaster jar. The title was chosen because the protagonist lets go of the past and makes a new start.^[4]

Synopsis

Bo-yeong, young woman living with her father Hyongsik and aunt Yeseon, believes that her mother was killed during the Korean War. She discovers that her mother is still not dead, but, after having been raped by an American soldier, has dedicated her life to taking care of orphans.^[5]

Cast

• Yoon Jeong-hee – Bo-yeong Yoon.
• Hong Se-mi – Younghee the secretary at the orphanage^[5]
• Nam Kung Won – Hyong-sik, the father of Bo-yeong
• Sa Mi-ja [ko] – Ye-seon, Bo-yeong's aunt
• Yoon Yang-ha – Hyosup, the fiancee of Bo-yeong
• Chai Jung-hoon – Kyong-il, detective who is formerly an orphan
• Lee Hoon - Kwak Chang su, formerly an orphan
• Park Am - Doctor, who is a friend of Hyong-sik
• Jeon Young-ju - Mother of Kyong-ae
• Ko Seol-bong- Senior inspector
• Kim Hye-ri
• Kim Ki-bum

Legacy

The film is significant for its earliest examples of negative portrayal of American forces stationed in South Korea in South Korean cinema.The film addresses the issue of sexual assault by Americans, a topic that has been ignored in south korean popular media until the 1960s.^[4]

Bibliography

English

• Okhabeul ggaedeuril dae (1971) at IMDb
• "When the Jewel Box is Broken (Oghab-eul kkaetteuli...(1971)". Korean Movie Database (KMDb). Retrieved 2009-07-21.

Korean

• 옥합을 깨뜨릴 때 (in Korean). [www.cine21.com]. Retrieved 2023-01-06.
• 옥합을 깨뜨릴 때 (1971) (in Korean). Korean Movie Database (KMDb). Retrieved 2009-07-21.